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As Though It Should Be Different

“Dreams are perceptual
temper tantrums, in which you literally scream, "I want it thus!" And
thus it seems to be. And yet the dream cannot escape its origin. Anger and fear
pervade it, and in an instant the illusion of satisfaction is invaded by the illusion
of terror. For the dream of your ability to control reality by substituting a
world that you prefer is
terrifying. Your attempts to blot out reality are very fearful, but this you
are not willing to accept. And so you substitute the fantasy that reality is
fearful, not what you would do to it. And thus is guilt made real.”
(T-18.II.4)

A Course in Miracles
likens the experience of the universe of form to a dream that is a temper
tantrum against Reality (Truth/God). The dreamer is the “Son of God”
(split-mind) and the self with which you identify is a figure in the dream, one
of billions of projections of the Son of God. (To be clear: This dream is only
a meaningless idea of the opposite-of-God that has no intention behind it. Only
within the dream does the dream seem to have the intention to be in defiance of
God).

There are many layers to the way ACIM addresses the idea of
“dreams”. The section that includes the quote above begins with the dreams you
have at night when you sleep. Then it segues into discussing the whole
experience of form as a dream. In any case, any dream is an attempt to have
another reality, whether that new reality is meant to replace the “reality” of
the awake-dream or to replace Reality Itself with the awake-dream. And it is
not the dream-to-replace-reality (the universe of form) or Reality that are
frightening. Your resistance to them and your attempts to change them frighten
you by increasing your guilt. Only if the world is real are you guilty. And you
only try to change it because you think it’s real.

So in identification with the ego (personal thought system)
you resist not only Reality but the reality (universe of form) that is meant to
replace It. On a daily basis you struggle against the way things are in the
world. A lot of the sense of being a
victim that one has in the world comes from an often unconscious belief that
the world is supposed to be different from the way that it is. It is an
unconscious belief not just that the world is perfectible, but that the perfect
world is here and that somehow you are kept from reaching it.

For example, Georgette leaves job after job because in each
job she finds that she is in conflict with someone. Well, yeah, the world is a
place of conflict between personal identities (egos). She will be in conflict
with everyone she knows sometimes. And she will be in conflict with someone in
every situation. The process of growth into full adulthood is adjusting to this
by taking responsibility for one’s own attitudes, beliefs and behaviors to
mitigate conflicts. But Georgette’s attitude is that there is a job out there
where she will get along with absolutely everybody all the time. This may not
be a conscious attitude, but unconsciously she goes from job to job seeking for
the perfect situation. And when she can’t find it she feels that she is being
unfairly deprived.

The world is not a perfect place and it never will be. It is
not meant to be. It is the idea of the opposite of Perfection (Truth). It is a
place of lack and conflict and dysfunction. It is not perfectible because then
it wouldn’t be what it is. If it was perfectible it would no longer be the
opposite of Perfection.

This does not mean that you should never work to change things
in the world for what you think would be the better. But it does mean that you
have to accept that you will never change the world to be perfect. If you seek
to improve (the world as well as the self with which you identify) rather than
perfect, you take a lot of pressure off yourself. And you eliminate a sense of
victimhood, too. The world is not perfect for anyone.

>>>>>

Learn about one-on-one mentoring, how to send a donation for this blog, and about the books The ACIM Mentor Articles, The Plain Language A Course in Miracles, 4 Habits for Inner Peace, and Releasing Guilt for Inner Peace at www.acimmentor.com.

I had to 'drop out' on what is going on in the world. Politics is the itch you can't quite scratch. You keep going back and going back. You get stirred up watching the news. You want to stop but the physical rush of anger that comes with politics and TV is like a drug. You want that fix. It's a special relationship. Misery loves company so when I said there's nothing I can do about any of it, I'm powerless, I got a lot of flak. My neighbor said "You can't do that!"And he was very close to being right but not in the way he thought. It's an addiction. You just have to go cold turkey. Special relationships, politics, things like "being green' or women's rights or guns, you name it, are things that I just have to leave to others.

"(To be clear: This dream is only a meaningless idea of the opposite-of-God that has no intention behind it. Only within the dream does the dream seem to have the intention to be in defiance of God)."Could you explain this a bit more? For example, do we ever become cognizant that we are in defiance of God? And what would that feel like?

Anonymous, you will have times, if you have not already, when you are in ego and want to reject God (or Holy Spirit or whatever you call It). This can show up as wanting to throw ACIM across the room, deciding to "divorce" the Holy Spirit, deciding all spirituality is hooey and giving it up for good, etc. (Of course you've come too far and this temper-tantrum passes).

However, I've never found "defiance" on a deeper level. On a deeper level I've seen how the universe of form is the opposite of God in every way. But it is just a meaningless idea without any intention behind it. It just is as God just is, but what it is, is impossible.

I too get off course which I've been calling it, lost in illusion but when that happens, I have presence of mind to ask, "what is it for" and then insight shines in . . . "oh, I see, I haven't learned that lesson yet".

For the past 3 years, learning and guidance came mostly in the form of special love and hate relationships, sleeping dreams and music, television and movies to some degree. This classroom is expansive but for me, it is changing. Special relationships are falling away, television at night and music has lessoned as did nightly dreaming. I am now being led to meditate more and as Liz has shared, these changes came about naturally.

Yes - Deb, Ken Wapnick used to say that, ask, "What is it for?" And I think that doesn't mean specifically - but is it to strengthen My Awareness of Truth (etc.), or is it to block my Awareness of Truth?

I just came upon an old notebook and I opened it to this quote, "Does this impede or contribute to my goal of awakening from the ego's dream of separation?" Then I wrote . . .This question will shift focus from bodies of the world, the home of all special relationships, to it's Source and will surely take me home.

So many ways to say the same thing. Heck, when I use to be impatient on my path I would tell myself "wake up already".

I was watching a speech on YouTube called “Achieving Your Potential” by Garry Kasparov. He is one of the greatest chess players of all time. He gave an example of a gifted physics student that opted to become a patent lawyer. He gained security and luxury but in doing that he gave up his dream of solving the mystery of the universe. Talk about a tap on the shoulder by the Holy Spirit! The HS was letting me know that is what I am doing. Einstein spent his life working on that along with thousands of other scientists since. The HS was getting through to me in terms that would have an impact on me. It might not mean a thing to others. I just thought that was so cool, “solving the mystery of the universe.”

Will, I know what you mean about getting those 'messages'. I think they are more common than we realize but we have to actually 'see' them (or hear them) when they come to us (from us).

And I feel I know what you mean about the 'solving of the universe', because my whole quandary started with not being able to perceive 'infinity'. I couldn't see how others could blithely go through life not wanting to solve this mystery! Whenever I tried to explain how this inability to perceive or conceive of 'infinity' confounded me, they would give me the weirdest look.... Like we're not suppose to care.

I always guessed that it would take a whole new and different 'reality' to be able to explain something that has no end... Because everything we know through our 'senses' is finite.

And so, the Course comes along and Non-Duality comes along and blows my mind. And of course I get freaked out and my ego wants to grab me by the throat and stop all this foolishness. Ha ha.

When I'm my bravest, I read 'Consciousness is All' by Dziuban but then I only want to dive back into the dream again for safety.

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I have been a student of A Course in Miracles since 1984, a life coach since 2000, and a mentor for students of A Course in Miracles and 4 Habits for Inner Peace since 2006. You can learn more about me and what I offer at my website, www.acimmentor.com.